Great Smoky Mountains - Day 2

We awoke to bright sunshine yesterday and were pleased that this day at the park would be warmer and sunnier. Sunday night we needed to move Allie to a different site, because the one we were in was previously booked for the upcoming week. We could have moved in the morning, but decided to "git 'er done," before bedtime. By the time we finished, it was 10 pm, but so glad we didn't need to take all that time before heading out to the park.

So, for now and until we leave here on Friday morning, we are in site 165, which is a nice back-in, full hook-up, 50 amp and partially shaded site.

Allie and Sir Duke are quite comfortable and Lucy loves looking out the windows at the bird, canine and human population.

Yesterday was Day 2 at Great Smoky Mountain National Park and we have yet to get the opportunity to snap a photo of the official park entrance sign. We were informed at the first Visitors' Center that Cades Cove was a "must see," and it more than lived up to that claim. I would highly recommend any visitor to make this a priority on their list of things do in the park. Be sure to allow a full day of driving and hiking to see it all.

We were afforded peaceful pastures, wildflower-filled hills and valleys, original 19th Century buildings (and some reproductions) where the first Euro-American settlers came to make their homes among the Cherokee. We learned the names of the first settlers - the Olivers, Lequires, Shields, Tiptons, Sparks, and Lawsons. Many of them are buried in one of the the church cemeteries located in the Cove. 

I thought it interesting that for such a small area and population that three churches were necessary, but ethics and politics caused the residents to split into three religious groups. 

The very first church built in 1827 was a log building called Primitive Baptist Church. Church meetings ceased during the Civil War and politics split the congregation into two factions afterward - the original Baptists and the Missionary Baptists. The church depicted below is the one that replaced the original in 1887. 

The original Methodist Church, a log cabin, was built in 115 days for $115 back in the early 1820s. It stood and served its followers until it was replaced with the current church in 1902. 

Some Methodist Churches split the seating of their congregation by gender, which explains the double door entrance, but this particular church didn't. They only borrowed the building plans for another Methodist Church. A graveyard lies behind this church as well.

Original headstone for John and Lurena Oliver, two of the first settlers in the Cove.

The original Baptist Church followers split over ethics and the original Baptist Church was re-named "Primitive Baptist Church" and the new church built in 1839 was called the "Missionary Baptist Church." The photo below is of the second church that was built in 1915. Its doors closed in 1944, but family of the original Cove residents have continued to be buried here.

The oldest building in the Cove is the John Oliver House, built in 1826. It contained a "great room" on the first floor and a sleeping area above. It is located in a peaceful valley. The house boasts a split-log construction with "dove-tail" corners and hand-made shingles. 

I couldn't imagine the energy, strength and guts it took to construct a home in the middle of Native American land. These people were true pioneers. I feel guilty now for complaining when I was waiting for cable to be hooked up last time I moved.

 

 

Original home with a section added behind to enlarge.

 

This photo shows the addition behind the original log home.

Elijah Oliver, the son of John, build his home a few miles down the road just after the Civil War. His property had more buildings and were constructed slightly different. There was a spring house for milk and butter, a smokehouse for meats, a corn crib, and a barn. Water was carried from the spring for drinking and bathing.

 

Smokehouse (foreground) restored, corn crib replica.

We passed the Tipton family property with all the buildings for a working farm. Although the corncribs, barn and smokehouse are reproductions, the log cabin is the original from the early 1870s and appeared to be a smaller version of the Elijah Oliver home.

My favorite house was built by George Washington "Carter" Shields. The location, style and layout would have been a lovely place to spend my days. I thought of my son, Glenn, and pictured him loving it as much as I did.

You can see where an addition was made after lumber was available.

Low ceilings helped to keep the home warm in winter. G wondered where the TV would have gone.

The huge upstairs sleeping area.

The side door looks out to a lush green lawn and forest beyond.

We saw the sad reminders of a hard life - many infants and young children were buried in all of the cemeteries. One mother lost three infants within 4 years. All three grave markers read "Infant daughter, budded on earth, bloomed in heaven," along with the date. Many years later, the parents were eventually laid to rest, followed by the siblings and their families. 

We saw delicate butterflies. We heard many different bird sounds. We "heard" silence.

We saw determination, strength and perseverance from what remains on the land and what lies below in the Cove.

Butterflies, pastures, valleys, mountains and blue skies.

 

Deep thought for the day:  Look back just long enough to see from where you have come in order to appreciate the direction in which you are headed today.  ~ vc

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

We spent Saturday afternoon driving, walking and hiking through Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The park is spread almost evenly between North Carolina and Tennessee. It is the most visited of all the National Parks, and I wonder if it's because there is no entry or parking fees, or if it's for the breathtakingly beautiful sights, its "hike-ability" and "drive-ability."  There is surely something for everyone regardless of your physical abilities or limitations. 

The higher mountains, full of spruce and fir, actually appear to have smoke billowing from the treetops and cool mist fills the air creating an approximate 20 degree difference to the forest floor way below. 

It was so interesting to learn about the different "levels" of the forest and the species of trees that thrived best in each. For instance, below the spruce and fir trees you will find hardwood trees such as beech and yellow birch. The next level down intersperses the poplar, sugar maple, hickory, magnolia and hemlock.  At the bottom, growing alongside the pine and oak are mountain laurel, rhododendron, the delicate dogwood trees, wildflowers and various indigenous shrubbery. I love nature....a place for everything and everything in its place.

The weather was misty, damp and chilly, but we managed to see a lot via the road trails and one hiking trail. Clingmans Dome trail allowed us to stand on the border of NC and TN in 46 degrees!  The wind chill made it actually feel more like 30 degrees. After a very steep half-mile hike we had to still climb to the top of the dome itself, and were a bit disappointed by the lack of any view, but the fact that we set out to conquer it and did, made it worthwhile. The photo at the misty-aired top is our proof. I happily "earned" my Smoky Mountain NP t-shirt.

Tomorrow we plan to head to Cades Cove, a section of the park that early settlers had developed. There are some original and reconstructed buildings, including a church that I'd like to hike in to see. Since it promises to be a much easier hike, I'd like to tackle one more, Laurel Falls, which is another easier hike of 2.6 miles that will afford a nice vantage point for photographing the falls.

I believe if we had 100 days to spend here we would not be able to devour it all. There are so many birds, mammals, trails, waterfalls, sights, sounds and acres of land that change with every season. You would need to be a Park Ranger to truly appreciate this place, that or a black bear!

Enjoy the photo show.....

Little Pigeon River

We came across several tunnels through the mountains.   The bottom section of forest - Pine, Oak, wildflowers, shrubs.

Close to the top - smoky and full of majestic fir and spruce

Clingmans Dome - we did it! 6,643' elevation.

 

Below Clingmans Dome.....the boundary sign at only 5,046 feet, warmer and clearer.

Stage where John D. Rockefeller presented the National Park to the people.

A crossroads.....we chose Clingmans Dome Trail.

The end of a long day.

Deep thought for the day:  Please - tell me what I can't do, because I will prove you wrong. When faced with a challenge, I hate to lose.   ~ vc

Raleigh, NC to Sevierville, TN

Notice the TINY sign indicating the campground!

Our home while in North Carolina

Once the horse show ended, we just abut had the whole place to ourselves.

After 12 fun days with family, our stay in North Carolina drew to a close on a cloudy and misty day. We packed up and headed for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, located between North Carolina and Tennessee. We are at River Plantation in Sevierville, which is pronounced "Suh veer vul" by the locals and it is located just far enough away from the "heavy-duty" neon commercialism centered closer to the National Park entrance.  This place was "G's" choice and although situated in the middle of  a lush green valley, it is still surrounded by more commercialism than we are accustomed.

We hit a bit of rain along the long and mountainous drive, but were treated to some beautiful countryside. From what we have seen thus far, Tennessee seems to be a very pretty state with many RVers with plenty to see and do.

First on our list of things to do will be a couple of trips to The Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Besides adding a sticker to our RV map, we can also add a sticker to our Park Passport book. I love two-for-ones. 

Our first full day here was spent finding hiking boots for me and a couple of other items that were on sale at REI. Rain permitting, we should be ready to hit some of the less strenuous trails soon. I only hope my body is as ready and my endurance as strong as I (opportunistically) feel I am.  I really want to attempt the longer hikes that afford the best views of various waterfalls and valleys. Besides, we need to get into "hiking shape" for Yellowstone. My new boots should help protect the ankle I fractured just a year ago. Even with that amount of time, it is not as strong and sturdy as I would like it to be, so a mid-high boot and a walking stick will accompany me going forward.

Those items are now added to my long list of regular and "diabetic" hiking supplies. We are at two full back-packs containing various items such as maps, camera, binoculars, rain jackets, extra socks, hats, wallets, band aides, whistle, National Park Passport Book, compass, water bottles, blood glucose testing machine, instant glucose, a glucagon pen and energy bars. "My bags are packed...I'm ready to go."

Besides walking trails, there are numerous drives that will take us to the furthermost portions of the park. Photos will be provided in the next blog entry. One surprising fact about this National Park is that it is the one with the most pollution. On an average day, one is no longer able to view the top peaks of these majestic formations.

Another thing I'd love to try is white water rafting, but the weather and time may not permit. We shall see, tomorrow..

Deep thought for the day:  "Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya, tomorrow. You're only a day away."   ~  Music and lyrics by, Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin

Raleigh, NC

Once the huge horse show ended, the remaining time spent at the Raleigh State Fairgrounds was quiet and peaceful. The weather was quite cooperative, as were the mosquitoes, who failed to make an appearance throughout our entire stay. By Sunday evening, the park thinned out to about ten RV's around us, which provided the opportunity to meet some of the other campers. 

Stock photo of the Outlaw.

There was one particular RV that caught our attention, first for the make and model, of which I had never seen in person, the Thor Outlaw Toy Hauler, and second, for the two cats who lazed around outside it without restraint. Seeing cats exhibiting this type of behavior was something I've never previously witnessed. They needed no leashes to keep them close to home, out of trouble or out of harm's way. 

It was interesting and fun to watch them roll in the gravel, laze in the sun and run for cover whenever a vehicle drove anywhere remotely near them. The cats, named Callie and Mango were accompanied by their owner, Denny, who was a nice fellow-full-timer who, along with his wife, work out of their RV. They also make use of a blog to document and share all of their experiences. It was nice chatting with another full-timer who has dealt with "cat" issues and who was willing to chat about travel and life on the road.

The main focus and reason for our stop in North Carolina was to visit my son, daughter-in-law and their three remarkable kids. It had been almost nine months since our last visit and the passing of time was quite evidently displayed through their growth and maturity. We spent as much time together as possible, considering their work/school schedules, and absorbed as much of them as was possible. Besides a wonderful Mother's Day, we fit in several other meals together, pedicures, lunch and shopping (for some), a nice lunch with my son, a school carnival, dinner and a movie with the kids, shopping, barbecuing, scary movie night, board games, and more. It was a whir wind 12 days.

Lucy was quite accommodating this visit by allowing herself to be petted by all three kids on two different occasions. She surprised me all the time.

Buddy and "escape artist," Tucker....check out all the locks.

A few photos below show the 4-legged grand dogs, the results of the school's annual fundraising carnival, swimming, campground time, fun days and love. 

Hope you enjoy as much as I did.

Clockwise from left, Cooper (wearing the hat I knit him), Savannah and Summer.

Fun times at Moo Moo's and Pop Pop's pool and watching scary shows!!!

Girls' day out.

Hunter Elementary Gifted and Talented Magnet School where all three attend.

And the winner of the 5th Graders' Fundraising Basket was......a very happy girl!

Dining at the campground.

Poor Coop, smiling, even with a fractured foot.....

It was chilly when the sun was going down, a good reason to cuddle.

Haircut gone bad......poor "G," but I love it!

Deep thought for the day:  Time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping, into the future.

Click HERE to listen to The Steve Miller Band's song, Fly Like an Eagle.

Mother's Day 2016

The "Eagle," aka Allie, landed safe and sound at Raleigh State Fairgrounds on Friday afternoon. The place was packed with trailers and RVs for a huge horse show that was taking place on the grounds. The campground for the fairgrounds is located behind the horse stables, so it was an ideal spot for all the empty trailers, contestants and fans to camp out for the week-long event. Despite the crowd, it was quiet, albeit a bit smelly in some locations - like the three big roll-off containers full of horse poop (future manure). I assume backhoes must have been responsible for the pick-up and deposits of the unpleasantries to the dumpsters.

Looking out one window at the horse trailers lined up across from us.

Looking outside the right side.

Three dumpsters in a row (hard to see last one) filled to the top!

On Saturday, "G" and I took the kids to see Disney's newest animated feature, "Jungle Book," in 3D. It was an awesome movie that grownups couldn't help but be fascinated and amazed by the advanced animation necessary to bring all the animals of the jungle to life. The movie was followed by dinner at Applebee's, then back home for showers and a few games of chess. These kids amaze me.

Somewhere over the rainbow...

Me and the NC girls.

Papa G and Cooper, the Mozzarella Stick King

Nina, presenting mommy with her breakfast in bed. 

Mother's Day began with a Face Time with the three grand kids in Colorado, where I was so impressed with their gift for mommy - a breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast, strawberries and coffee, prepared by Nina and served to mom in bed by all three smiling faces. That had to be one of the best gifts my daughter-in-law has ever received. Kitchen was even cleaned up as part of the present, and I saw the final results and can attest to a bright and sparkling kitchen.

Love....captured in a photo.

L to R: Me, Joan, GiGi and Moo Moo (Ronnie)

The afternoon was spent with the other half of my special loves. We enjoyed a relaxing day at Ronnie's and Frank's (aka Moo Moo's and Pop Pop's) house in the company of GiGi (the kids maternal Great Grandmother). There were dogs galore, good conversation and fabulous food. The kids spent most of the day in the pool and our seats on the enclosed back patio afforded us a front row seat to their antics and awesome swimming capabilities. 

I enjoyed a nice conversation with Gigi about the assisted living facility she lives in. God Bless her, at almost 90, she was telling be about all the "old people" who live there. I got a kick out of her referring to people her age and younger, as old. I feel the same way a lot of times, finding it hard to believe someone is my age when I assumed they were older. I have to believe it's either my mirror or my mind that is fooling me. Since GiGi looks amazing, I have to think it just might be our minds. 

A big thank-you to Ronnie and Frank for always opening your home and hearts to G and I. How fortunate for us to like and enjoy each other's company so much. 

The only photo I was able to get of me with my pride and joy - my son, my friend.

Savannah!

Cooper and Summer

The Three Musketeers - their energy astounds me.

As the day drew to a close, I began to feel ill and discovered that my insulin pump and Continuous Glucose Monitor were not working properly. Alarms that should have alerted me to extremely high glucose levels failed to do so. Once back in Allie and feeling worse, it was decided (and insisted by "G") that a trip to Duke-Raleigh Hospital's ER was in order. So, another holiday was spent in a hospital getting myself back to feeling better and regulated. Darn those electronics!!!! Can't live with them and can't survive without them.....

Today finds me exhausted, but better. Poor "G" needs to catch upon his sleep too, so I'm sure there will be an afternoon "cat" nap on tap for us both. Life is good when you can take an afternoon nap. 

Deep thought for the day:  "Somewhere over the rainbow, bluebirds fly. Birds fly over the rainbow, why, oh why can't I."  ~ Arlen and Harburg 

The serenity of a bird's life: Soaring high, swooping low, constant fluid motion, beauty and song. Similar to my life, I guess. with the highs and lows. Gotta love it, no matter what challenges you face - face them head on and then soar. ~ vc

Countdown to Phase I

It's Monday morning and the countdown to Phase I of our journey has whittled down to TWO days. We've been busy preparing to leave our winter home after having settling in quite comfortably here for over six months. Each day brings us closer to completing the chores necessary to resume life on the road.

A lot of those six months have been taken up with dentist and doctor visits, with today being my last visit to the chiropractor.  Unfortunately, no matter where you go, your health goes with you, because, although you can run, you sure can't hide.

The weather has been teasing us with temps in the 90's, making it difficult to leave this tropical paradise (or do much strenuous work until after 5 pm).  The bright side of leaving will be in the fact that we can open the windows again.  The air conditioning drowns out all the beautiful sounds of the outdoors and I miss the song of the mockingbirds most.

As much as I enjoy my strolls to the pool for a swim to cool off, I am looking forward to getting back on the road and our first extended stop in Raleigh where we will see eldest son and family. I'm already filling the calendar with dinners, ice cream stops, babysitting, a movie, a school fair and an afternoon at the nail salon.  Life is good - especially for grandparents!

Allie is washed, Sir Duke is sparkling clean, the storage areas are all packed, the shed is organized and we are stocked with meals to last until Friday. Ready, set, drive.

Last thing to do is disconnect and reconnect with the open road! Tic tock, tic tock, Raleigh, here we come!!!!


Deep thought for the day:  "Traveling - it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller." ~ Ibn Battuta  (Born in 1304, Ibn was a Medieval Berber Muslim who traveled all his life and recorded his experiences. He is recognized as one of the greatest travelers of all time and the first to write a travel journal. The original Fodor's????)

Busy bees, nasty mosquitos and time flying by...

We're noticing more often of how quickly time is passing us by, and never more so than at the beginning of a new month. We find ourselves looking at each other and saying, "Where did last month go?" Well, most of it has been spent just living every day, normal, retired life. Days tend to begin later and nights never end early.

A necessity we've accomplished has been to establish ourselves with Florida doctors, which can be time consuming and sometimes just a shot in the dark. We have been fortunate to locate a family practice doc, a podiatrist, a chiropractor, dermatologist and a fabulous dentist. We've gotten off to a great start thanks to friends' recommendations and Internet searches. Most importantly, and just by chance, I found nice hair and nail salons. I discovered it is harder to let a different hairstylist cut my hair than have a strange phlebotomist draw my blood. Go figure. 

"G" has been a busy bee "buzzing" around our lot non-stop. He's built a loft in the shed, began insulating the walls, hung blinds on the windows for privacy and installed air vents to help with heat build-up. He also installed fence posts at the front sides of the property that have solar panel lights on top. He even added our lot number to one, making us more easily found by the UPS driver! A few of our neighbors have joined in on this new look and our whole corner is sporting matching posts, lights and numbering.

We've made several trips to the four Disney World Parks, which are a fun way to get a lot of exercise incorporated into our day. Attending with friends or even just by ourselves is always an adventure and a treat.

Zika Mosquito

No type of "camping experience" exists that doesn't include mosquitoes, but plastered on the news of late, and subject of conversations by the pool, have focused on the newest health scare that has hit Florida and now spreading throughout the US - the Zika Virus. This virus originated in Brazil and is contracted by being bitten by an infected mosquito. I am diligent about keeping my spray can of Cutter handy at all times.

Spoiled Rotten Cat

Not to leave Lucy out of the equation, she's been living the "Life of Riley" within the walls of Allie. She has her routines, and lest we forget one, she repeatedly reminds us of what it is she wants; be it a snack, a brushing, nap time in the closet, or to move something off the dash so she can jump up. She doesn't need words, her little mewls and actions speak volumes! Here she is basking in the sun as she lounges in her scratch pad saying, "What?"





Deep thought for the day:  Don't miss the starting gun...ready, set, LIVE... ~ vc

Credit for the deep thought inspiration goes to Pink Floyd...Click HERE to listen to the masterpiece, Time.

Tired of lying in the sunshine staying home to watch the rain. 

You are young and life is long and there is time to kill today, 

and then one day you find ten years have got behind you. 

No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun.